Quantitative Measures

Quantitative Growth: Introduction to Standardized Assessments

The primary tool used for measuring quantitative academic growth in my classroom is students' iReady assessments. Students complete 3 iReady literacy assessments per year, two in Semester 1 and one in Semester 2. These assessments help break down students' literacy levels into six categories, each of which receives a Lexile score in addition to the students' overall Lexile score. Students are familiar with iReady and understand its schedule and pertinence to our classroom. Students' performance data allows me to plan more effectively and provide individualized instruction based on student need.

The iReady assessments are taken during class time, typically over two periods. Teachers do not have access to the assessment questions and cannot see students' answers to questions throughout the assessment. The assessment typically takes students in between 60 and 120 minutes to complete. Students access the iReady interface (for both assessments and lessons) through their Clever accounts with the Hawai'i Department of Education. The assessment itself is interactive and includes videos and listening prompts as well as reading comprehension activities. When students complete the assessment, their scores are broken down into six categories, each of which has a corresponding Lexile score attached. These scores are then compounded to give each student an overall Lexile score.

iReady domains

2. iReady National Norms and Scoring Chart

The following placement tables published by iReady help explain how teachers can ascertain students' iReady scores and placements based on nationally-created standards. This also breaks down each domain into its scoring components as well as the overall scoring placements. These scoring metrics have undergone extensive review and are further explained to teachers at the state and district level through mandated professional development sessions for ELA and Math teachers who use the iReady assessments and curriculum. These placement tables help to understand specific Lexile or grade-level markers to strive for as well as the numerical points difference between each grade level increase. A student who is performing on grade level in my 6th grade classroom would aim to score in the 641-653 range, and students who performed on grade level in my 7th grade classroom in 2020 would have been in the 654-669 range for their overall scores.

iReady Placement Tables

3. Data and Analysis

The iReady assessment data is broken down into each of the five domains as well as overall scores for individual students and for my entire class. Included below is whole class data for my 6th grade classroom based on their first iReady diagnostic assessment that was completed in August. This will be referred to as Beginning of Year, or BOY data.

iReady also provides individual summaries that show each student's score and placement in each of the six categories. It is typical in a 6th grade classroom to see students test out of phonological awareness, phonics, and high frequency words. There are exceptions to this, as some students are performing significantly below grade level. There is typically more variance in students' levels in the vocabulary and literature and informational comprehension categories. For instance, it is possible to be below grade level in one of these categories but still perform on grade level overall. The specificity of these categories is a large help in planning instruction, which will be discussed further in the following section.

A 6th grade student who was reading at a Grade 7 level in August tested out or above grade level in each literacy category.

A 6th grade student who was reading at a Kindergarten level in August tested out of phonological awareness but at a Grade 1 or below level for each of the other five categories..

Teachers can also analyze student performance data using the layout included here, which allows teachers to see students overall performance and performance in each category side-by-side in a roster format.

iReady also allows me to examine student data by class period, which is included below. This is helpful in creating plans to modify whole class instruction and also understand the needs of each of my class periods.

BOY class performance data from my Period 6, which includes 11 ELL students.

Shown above is MOY data broken down by domain for my Period 6 class. This class has the lowest overall average of all of my classes and is my only class where some students are still struggling with phonics. It is clear from this data that students are still on track to grow at least one grade level or grow outside of their current color category within the year, as there has already been growth in all six categories. This growth is dramatic considering that this student population of this class is over 1/3 ELL students who face additional obstacles to English fluency and dramatic academic growth should be considered within this lens. For instance, dramatic growth for these students could vary from increased phonological awareness to increases in verbal fluency, and their growth must be looked at in an individual nature.

BOY class performance data from my Period 1, which is a General Education classroom.

MOY data for my Period 1 class. It is apparent that students in this class are experiencing dramatic academic growth, as each Lexile category has shifted toward a higher percentage of mastery. The category that has increased in size most significantly is students performing on or at grade level, with nearly every student across the class increasing a grade level in their growth in less than half a year. The students in this class are all shifting toward higher levels, as is apparent in the comparison of data included above. Numerically, this is equivalent to students experiencing 15-30 points of growth in 2.5 months. This data indicate that students are on track to achieve at least two years of growth, or nearly 60 points of growth, in the academic year. This growth is dramatic numerically and in terms of skills growth.

Note: the 3 students who have not completed the assessment transferred out of the school and have not yet been reflected on the roster change.

Class and individual growth data from one of my Inclusion rosters.

4. Using iReady to Plan for Instruction

iReady data is an incredibly useful tool for planning for instruction in whole class, small group, and individual settings. It aids in my creation of expectations for each class, small group, and student as well as increases my understanding of best practices for instruction. For instance, I can use iReady data to help create reading groups or seating charts to ensure that students are exposed to a variety of learners but can also be provided with level-appropriate texts in group settings as needed.

I used this student's performance data to implement individualized vocabulary instruction, as this was the only category that caused the student to score below the 6th grade level. This student receives vocabulary instruction from me in ELA as well as from my co-teacher in her Advisory class as an interdisciplinary approach at increasing their vocabulary acquisition and overall literacy level. This is an example of iReady data informing instruction to ensure that each student is on path to achieve dramatic levels of academic growth.

Comparatively, this student is performing well below grade level and will benefit from instruction on phonics. This allows me to understand necessary modifications that need to be made for this student, especially on listening assessments such as spelling quizzes. I used this data to modify this student's spelling quiz so that they are expected to identify sounds in each word's prefix or suffix instead of correctly hear the word, identify it, and spell it, which would be unreasonably difficult given this student's Kindergarten level of literacy in phonics and high frequency words. This does not go to say that I do not also expect this student to make great gains, but that dramatic academic growth is an individual pursuit for each student in which I provide each student with individualized instruction and approaches as needed.

This student is performing overall above the 6th grade level and particularly excelling in comprehension of informational text. It is sometimes easy to overlook these students in terms of dramatic academic growth and achievement because they are typically students who receive good grades on assessments and do not struggle with comprehension. That said, I also used this student's iReady data to create an individualized instruction plan that aims to increase both their literature and informational comprehension throughout the year. I collaborated with this student's Social Studies teacher to find rigorous informational texts and have provided differentiation options and options for extension for this student to read more difficult literature during free reading times.

While iReady provides useful data for each class period and best practices in terms of whole and small group instruction within those classes, I also give students a considerable amount of choice when it comes to their reading and literacy. I want students to be in group settings both with students at their levels at certain times as well as with students at different levels at other times to enhance each student's learning experience. I also want to combat the obvious danger of having students perceive their groups as a "smart group" or "not smart group." Included below are photos of students reading together with partners of their choosing.

These two 6th grade students, one of whom is reading at a 7th grade level and the other at a 2nd grade level, chose to read together during partner time and took turns reading page by page. It was clear that each of their levels helped them work together as a unit and aided both students' comprehension.

These two students also chose to read together and are individually reading at 4th and 2nd grade levels. These students also took turns reading aloud to each other but alternated paragraphs instead of pages.

5. Individual Examples of Student Growth

Included in this section is data from my 7th grade classroom that demonstrates literacy gains for each student who came to class regularly (this excluded one student from the class) in 2020. This evidence acts as a clear and numerical statement of student achievement growth throughout the 2020-2021 school year. Though these gains were measurable, the hope is that students will demonstrate increased gains comparatively this year as we are back to a normal schedule and are doing school fully in person. During the year that this data corresponds to, students completed the equivalent of half a year of curriculum and saw their teachers every 4 school days. This leas to large decreases in engagement and student learning.

Included above is year long data for my 7th grade classroom in the 2020-21 school year. On average, each student jumped a grade level in their literacy skills during this year. This is evident from the numerical data included above, in which each student experienced an average growth of 20-25 Lexile points. This growth is loosely equivalent to a grade level of growth, depending on where each student started. For instance, numerical growth for a student who began at a Grade 4 level, such as student in column 21, is significant and dramatic for this student because their attendance and ability to attend school virtually was heavily impacted by their home environment. So, even though this student stayed at a 4th grade level, a nearly 20 point Lexile growth is dramatic considering the barriers this student experienced. Alternatively, students who did experience a grade level or more of growth in numerical scores also demonstrated dramatic academic growth considering they attended the equivalent of half of an academic year, at best. During this year, students saw teachers every four days of the academic calendar for shortened classes, which led to students overall completing about half of a year's worth of curriculum and content. With this in mind, jumping a grade level in literacy level should still be considered dramatic academic growth. The abbreviated academic calendar was also compounded with inconsistent student attendance and engagement and difficulty implementing response to intervention measures without students physically present at school. All things considered, demonstrating a grade level of growth in the equivalent of half of an academic year of content is dramatic academic growth that would keep students on target to complete 2 years of overall growth in a typical year.

BOY data for Student 1. Student 1 is a 6th grader who was rescinded from Special Education services this year but is currently performing below grade level. In August, this student was performing at an overall grade 2 level.

MOY data for Student 1. Student 1 has exceeded the "typical" growth for this timeline by a significant margin, demonstrating an overall increase of 36 points. This growth is dramatic for less than half of an academic year, especially considering the improvement that this student demonstrated in vocabulary knowledge. This student achieved two grade levels of vocabulary growth in a matter of months, which is numerically dramatic.

BOY data for Student 2. Student 2 is an ELL student who recently moved to the United States.

MOY data for Student 2. Student 2 has demonstrated dramatic academic growth in this span of time, especially for an ELL student, considering the barriers these students often face in ELA classrooms. This student has improved their comprehension skills in both literature and informational text by two grade levels in the span of 2.5 months and has seen an overall numeric increase of 31 points, both of which are dramatic levels of growth.

BOY data for Student 3. Student 3 is a general education student who began the year performing a year behind grade level at a 5th grade level.

MOY data for Student 3. Student 3 is now performing slightly above grade level at a Mid-6 level. This student has exhibited over a year's worth of growth in terms of grade level in 2.5 months. This would put this student on track to perform at or above the 7th grade level when he ends the academic year in 6 month's time. This growth is dramatic and exhibits a numerical gain that ranged from a student performing behind grade level to above grade level for the following year in one year's time.

BOY data for Student 4. Student 4 is a gifted student who entered the year performing slightly above grade level, but still well within the grade level range, at a mid 6 level.

MOY data for Student 4. Student 4 is now performing well above grade level and has demonstrated 43 points of growth in 2.5 months. This puts Student 4 well outside of even the "stretch" level of numerical academic growth, clearly placing her in a category of dramatic levels of academic growth. This puts this student on track to be at an 8th grade level or above when she enters 8th grade this coming fall. This growth is dramatic numerically and in terms of skills growth, as we can see that this student jumped at least a grade level in both her vocabulary and literature comprehension skills, which have been our academic focuses of the first two quarters of the year. This level of dramatic growth for a gifted student who entered the classroom above grade level, as well as the growth of students who entered significantly below grade level, demonstrates the ways in which my classroom is successfully differentiated and a rigorous environment for each learner.

BOY data for Student 5. Student 5 is a general education student who began the year performing two years behind grade level, at a 5th grade level.

MOY data for Student 5. Student 5 has exhibited a year's worth of literacy growth, or 40 numerical points, in 2.5 months and is now performing at grade level in every single domain except for informational text. Informational text is the focus of Quarter 3, so this student is well on track to improve her comprehension skills of informational text in the coming months and end 6th grade at a grade-appropriate literacy level to begin 7th grade, judging by her ability to achieve two years of growth in literature comprehension in a 2.5 month focus on literature. This is especially dramatic considering this student began the year at a 4th grade level, meaning that this student is on track to achieve overall 3 years of growth in one calendar year.

A side-by-side view of Student 6's performance and growth from their BOY data to their MOY data. Student 6 is a general education student who entered the classroom this year significantly below grade level at a Grade 3 proficiency in literacy skills, and has since moved up three grade levels and is performing solidly within the grade level range for a 6th grader. This growth is dramatic numerically, with an increase of 73 points, which was the second highest numerical score increase of any student. This increase is particularly dramatic because this student jumped into the grade level range and is now demonstrating skills consistent with 6th grade literacy proficiency.

Both individually and class-wide, my 6th grade students are on track to achieve numerical growth that is equivalent to two full years of growth in this academic year. This reaches the dramatic range of numerical growth and also exhibits a dramatic level of skills growth. Many of my students have already demonstrated a full year of growth in 2.5 months, meaning that the MOY data is actually short of the actual middle of the year, and even with this, students have demonstrated growth consistent with a dramatic trajectory for a mid-year point.

Included above is an individual layout of each student's growth from their BOY to MOY data. These students are on the highest end of growth, with each student listed here demonstrating dramatic numerical growth both in terms of grade level and percent progress over the first 2.5 months of their 6th grade academic year. This data also demonstrates that all types of learners are experiencing dramatic academic growth, as is evident in the incredibly high percent progress scores of a gifted student and a student who began the year at a Kindergarten level (in rows 1 and 2).

Conclusion

In sum, the quantitative component of academic growth is clearly measurable through students' iReady assessment data. I use students' data and achievement to plan individualized instruction in addition to the lessons students complete in their individualized iReady path. These data allow me to effectively differentiate instruction for each of my students and understand the best practices depending on student needs. This approach has led to measured gains for each of my students' literacy levels in the 2020-2021 year and hopefully will do the same to a greater extent in the current school year as we return to in-person learning and a consistent schedule.

It is also clear that students have grown most in their vocabulary and literature comprehension skills in the first 1.5 quarters of the academic year in which they completed both testing windows. On average throughout my classes and in the individual scholars highlighted in the above section, each student demonstrated academic growth equivalent to an entire grade level in the vocabulary and literature comprehension domains, with some students demonstrating growth equivalent to two or more grade levels. Not only does this put students on target to achieve at least two full years of growth in an academic year, it also clearly demonstrates that students are already demonstrating academic levels of growth in terms of their skills and numerical scores. Growth in vocabulary and literature comprehension is particularly strong evidence of dramatic academic growth as a result of my instructional strategies as Quarter 1 and 2 have focused on response to literature and rigorous vocabulary acquisition. This pattern also makes me confident that students will exhibit dramatic levels of academic growth in informational comprehension as our content moves on to informational reading and debate in the second half of the year, and that students will continue to demonstrate dramatic levels of vocabulary growth continuously.

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